Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

3

Weird veggies are slowly becoming a bit of a hype around me : there's a traditional veggie calendar, supermarkets sell weird veggies. Of course, as I'm paleo (I hope so), I have to try out as much as I can.

I've tried black radish, horseradish root, celeriac, salsify, daikon, garden cress, jerusalem artichoke and lots of others :

alt text

Now it's your turn :). What veggies did you try out recently?

flag	asked Feb 9 2012 at 18:30 Bruno 1,514●4●15

4

I've been watching the show Chopped a lot and they've always got weird fruit and vegetables I've never heard of. Makes me salivate and want to try them all! – scorp2780 Feb 9 2012 at 18:34

1

My parents are addicted to Chopped, they watch it 3 times a week! They always have kale for breakfast, and now they call kale cooked in bacon fat "Kale a la Chopped". Must have been prepared like that on the show, it's pretty funny! – JeJ Feb 9 2012 at 19:50

1

Bruno - where do you live? Those are normal veg for me, I live in NY, so am curious as to location and supply/demand changes :) – jesuisjuba - paleorepublic.com Feb 9 2012 at 20:15

Belgium. For us, this is weird stuff. If I'd ask 20 people around me if they know salsify, there won't be one positive answer :) Kale, for example, is very hard to find here too because nobody wants to eat it so they don't sell it. – Bruno Feb 10 2012 at 7:26

Payam · Answer 1 · 2012-02-09 19:11:39Z UTC

4

Okinawan sweet potatoes. Really taste unique and look really cool!

answered Feb 9 2012 at 19:11

Payam
851●5●10

2

Yaki-Imo! I mainly eat the Japanese sweets, but the Okinawan when I can get them are awesome. Try this with it: 12tb soft butter, 1/2tb white miso, 3tb finely chopped scallion. Combine all of it really well and top your sweet p. – jesuisjuba - paleorepublic.com Feb 9 2012 at 20:13

gydle · Answer 2 · 2012-02-09 19:31:47Z UTC

3

I just tried parsnips tonight. They're surprisingly awesome roasted with some olive oil. Much more interesting than potatoes. And purple carrots. We just joined an association that delivers veggies and fruit from local farmers to your door twice a month for a fixed cost - and you just get what's in season.

answered Feb 9 2012 at 19:31

gydle
4,975●3●16

	Mmmm - parsnips are lovely aren't they! I recommend having them mashed atop a pork pie = utter delight. – tatty Feb 9 2012 at 19:47
	Deep fried parsnip chips are good as well, dusted with curry powder and sea salt. – Joshua Feb 10 2012 at 1:46
	Strips of parsnip and carrots; roll in butter + a pinch of salt, and roast in the oven... it comes out tasting super sweet and fragrant. – a tricksty trickster Feb 10 2012 at 5:45

sj4nz · Answer 3 · 2012-02-09 18:39:44Z UTC

2

Turnips. I somehow thought they were going to be super-bitter, but I guess perhaps I was thinking radishes? Someone online somewhere used turnips shredded as a paleo-hashbrown alternative. That's intriguing.

answered Feb 9 2012 at 18:39

sj4nz
61●3

Nance · Answer 4 · 2012-02-09 18:41:00Z UTC

So far, I've tried rutabaga and fennel (now favorites) and celeriac (good) and raw basil (chopped finely into a salad--yum!) and cactus strips (added to bone-broth stew they are like chewy green beans.)

My experiences have been positive so I'll definitely try others over time.

greymouser · Answer 5 · 2012-02-09 18:41:31Z UTC

2

This probably varies person to person, and locale to locale -- none of those veggies you mentioned are "weird" to me!

I did have a new one recently, although maybe not too weird ... a chayote. Yummy!

alt text

answered Feb 9 2012 at 18:41

greymouser
17.6k●1●7●29

	I was afraid of that :D! I never ever saw/tasted those veggies in my first 19 years on this earth, but in 6 months I've tasted something like 30 new veggies and a couple of meats (lamb, organ meats, bones, ...). Chayote looks really funny too :) – Bruno Feb 9 2012 at 18:43
	Yes, definitely these are weird! But very cool! What are they? A root, a fruit or a vegetable? – MeepsIsWellfed Feb 9 2012 at 18:49
	Oh, and most importantly, how do you eat them? – MeepsIsWellfed Feb 9 2012 at 18:49
	They are squashes. – Matt B Feb 9 2012 at 18:59
	The entire thing is edible -- there is little to no difference in texture between the flesh area and the seed area. I usually just chop them up in salads and salsas, but I have added them to a roast as well. – greymouser Feb 9 2012 at 19:26

show 2 more comments

PatternMatching · Answer 6 · 2012-02-09 18:44:53Z UTC

2

May not be so exotic to others, but Bok choy - ludicrously high nutritional value. Up there with Kale.

Bok Choy

answered Feb 9 2012 at 18:44

PatternMatching
1,060●3●9

Did you eat it raw? I tried baking it but didn't like the results. My partner loved it and ended up eating all of it. I may just not be my thing. – MeepsIsWellfed Feb 9 2012 at 18:48

1

Honestly, I like to juice with it a lot. Makes a better tasting juice than kale. Bok choy, parsley, carrot, lime, ginger == awesome. – PatternMatching Feb 9 2012 at 18:49

1

It's good lightly stir fried or even grilled. – henny Feb 9 2012 at 20:10

I never found bok choy in any store, but I found similar stuff called pak-choy. – Bruno Feb 10 2012 at 7:28

MeepsIsWellfed · Answer 7 · 2012-02-09 18:44:54Z UTC

I recently tried some Daikon radish (the white root thing pictured above). I bought it purely based on looks and a vague memory that I can make mashed radish (mash-rash?) with it. It turned out great! What an amazing flavor. I would describe it as earthy.

TO PREPARE: Pressure cooked with ghee, then added some coconut cream and cooked a bit more. Let it cool then slap it in the food processor for the 'mashed' texture. Add salt to taste.

So surprising and good. I'm looking forward to making it again.

Paleo Designer · Answer 8 · 2012-02-10 00:48:50Z UTC

2

I tried a fuzzy squash last weekend (it was just ok) and I bought a kohlrabi that I need to make soon. The Asian supermarket near me has all kinds of produce I've never even heard of before!

answered Feb 10 2012 at 0:48

Paleo Designer
711●2●7

Stephanie · Answer 9 · 2012-02-09 18:58:46Z UTC

1

Beets. That may not be weird to many of you, but I grew up in a corn/peas/beans house. I didn't even know what a been was until I met my husband... I boil them, peal the skin and then dice them up with butter, salt, and pepper.

answered Feb 9 2012 at 18:58

Stephanie
1,358●4●14

1

I like 'em roasted, in coconut oil, olive oil or bacon fat. Maybe some cloves of garlic in there. I don't even bother peeling, I just give them a scrub. Golden beets are my fave. – Renee Feb 9 2012 at 20:03

1

Cooked diced beets make a psychedelic salad with diced celery, diced cooked carrots, diced cucmumber, peas and homemade mayo. – henny Feb 9 2012 at 20:13

1

It was weird to me too, I tried it for the first time a couple of weeks ago and it's very tasty. – Bruno Feb 10 2012 at 7:24

Laina · Answer 10 · 2012-02-09 19:40:51Z UTC

We just started getting veggies "boxes" from a co-op, so we don't know what we are getting until we get it. I was hoping for some unusual stuff, but the "craziest" things we got were red kale and Swiss chard. They were excellent, but I'm hoping one day that box comes to us with something I need to Google. I love trying weird stuff because then I learn new ways to cook and eat.

Joshua · Answer 11 · 2012-02-10 01:49:31Z UTC

I eat plenty of veggies that a modern dieter won't/doesn't eat (my mother is repulsed when I tell her about my roasted rutabaga dishes - oh well).

But I've recently done roasted golden beets in coconut oil, with some "mild" Indian spices (coriander, cardamom, star anise) with rock salt - awesome.

What vegetables did you try out?

11 Answers